(Newser)
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There's stormy weather ahead for the sun and that spells trouble for 21st-century society, NASA scientists say. The sun will wake "from a deep slumber" and enter a period of increased activity sometime around 2013, hitting the Earth with magnetic energy that has the potential to disrupt everything from power grids to aircraft to the banking system to consumer gadgets, says Richard Fisher, chief of NASA's Heliophysics Division.

"The issue is now that modern society is so dependent on electronics, mobile phones and satellites, much more so than the last time this occurred,” Fisher tells the Telegraph. “There is a severe economic impact from this. We take it very seriously. The economic impact could be like a large, major hurricane or storm.” Solar scientists met last week to discuss ways to protect vital systems from the upcoming onslaught.